


How To (not) Cry

by dimitr_i



Series: The Tragedy of Loving You [2]
Category: Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Bucky Barnes as Captain America, F/M, Family Feels, Kid Peter Parker, M/M, Protective Bucky Barnes, Sad Peter Parker, Sappy Ending, Steve Rogers as the Winter Soldier, Tony and Steve argue, Uncle Bucky Barnes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-09
Updated: 2020-04-09
Packaged: 2021-02-28 17:34:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,672
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23471017
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dimitr_i/pseuds/dimitr_i
Summary: After a mission gone sour, everyone needs a little affirmation.
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Natasha Romanov, Steve Rogers/Tony Stark
Series: The Tragedy of Loving You [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1687060
Comments: 9
Kudos: 89





	How To (not) Cry

"How does it feel?" Natasha's words hung dry in the air, mixed with shallow breathes and the patter of rain on the window. Bucky hissed as she slowly rubbed the cream into his ribs. His entire chest was decorated in purples and yellows, the heat seeming to radiate from him. 

"Oh, this is nothing. Doesn't even feel like I got hit anymore," She raised her eyebrow, pressing her finger just until the man squirmed away, pulling his shirt back down. "Ok! I get it, a little more than nothing."

"Exactly, so don't even start with your "it'll heal" bullshit, it still hurts now. Therefore, we handle it now." Bucky knew she was upset with him, that he cut things a bit too close. 

But there had been a kid. Just a little girl, no older than Peter, trapped in her room. He could see it through the window. He had just caught her waving out of the corner of his eye, tiny hands banging against the glass. Of course, the villain of the week had been perfectly in the way, another angry guy in a metal suit running anything he could. Bucky was able to move the rubble and bring her outside and to her family before running back in. If one little girl was trapped, it wasn't impossible for there to be someone else. Unfortunately, he never found out. Angry-guy decided to give one final shove to the unstable complex, sending everything on top of the Captain. 

Natasha pulled away, packing up the first aid and putting it back under the counter. She was still in her suit, dirt and dust still clinging to her cheeks. He grabbed her hand before she could leave. Her eyes glistened, only a moment away from tears. Natasha didn't cry, no one did. 

"I'm sorry...and thank you. really," He said. He kept his voice quiet as to not break the comfort of silence. 

"Yeah, just don't do it again."

"Scout honor." He gave Natasha a final salute before she left the kitchen, a small laugh echoing through the hall. "You gonna leave me now?" 

"I still have to shower, James." Bucky sighed, leaning dramatically against the counter.

"Let me guess-"

"-by myself." She flashed a smile as she turned the corner. Bucky smiled as he wandered into the living room of their home, falling onto the couch. He already showered anyway. After Shield medical brought him back early from the fight, he managed to persuade them into letting him off easy, with some meds and a few super band-aids. Bucky had meant to go back out but by the time he was free from the doctors, the fight had been over. 

Not even five minutes passed when someone knocked on the door. Bucky stood up, cracking his back as he made his way to the door. There, he was met with his five-year-old nephew. Peter had his two favorite race cars in each hand and Bucky could see his white-knuckled grip. Bucky immediately pulled the boy into his arms and carried him into the living room.

"Petey, what you doing down here? Shouldn't you be making dinner with your Pops?" Peter tucked his head into Bucky's neck, rolling one of the cars on Bucky's shoulder. He shook his head, but Bucky could hear the soft sniffles coming from the boy. He was trying not to cry and it was painfully obvious.

Bucky set Peter on a chair, crouching in front of him. He waited until Peter finally looked up from his cars with puffy eyes. "Can you tell me what's wrong Pete? I don't like seeing you upset."

"Daddy and Papa were fighting when th-they got home and Daddy told me to wait in my room but-but I could still hear them yelling and then Papa got really angry and left, and...and I saw Daddy crying but he went into his room and I got scared so I-" Peter had stopped rambling, the tears now streaming down his face. Bucky held him in his arms as the boy cried into his shoulder, snot and all soaking into his shirt. He didn't care that Peter's knees were digging right into his stomach, he only cared about his kid. 

They stayed like that Bucky managed to calm the boy down, his hiccups slowly disappearing. "You're ok Pete, I got you." He shifted so that he was sitting on the chair with Peter in his lap, his head resting on Bucky's chest. 

"Do Daddy and Papa hate each other now?"

"Oh no, baby. They don't hate each other, they could never. They're scared, just like you or me."

"But why were they yelling if they were scared?" Bucky sighed, he had not been ready for this conversation.

"Well, your Dad and Pops are very strong, that's how they save the day. But sometimes, they mess up or do something they shouldn't. They still save the day, but your Dad and Papa love each other so much, so they get scared when one of them does something like that. Do you get what I'm saying?" Peter's tears had almost stopped at this point, but he continued to rub his eyes. 

"I think so..."

"They yelling because they don't want the other to do the bad thing again. They're just stressed right now, but I promise you that your parents do not hate each other." Bucky saw Natasha come around the corner. She stood behind the chair, brushing the hair out of Peter's face. 

"You feeling better, солнышко? Do you want to help me make some dinner? We can build a pillow fort out here after we eat while James bakes us cookies," She lifted Peter out of Bucky's arms, carrying him down the hallway and into their bedroom. She had him giggling before the door even closed. 

"Captain Barnes, Mr. Stark is waiting at your door. He has asked to come in." Jarvis said. Even his voice had a slight edge to it. 

"Tell him I'll be out in a minute." Bucky didn't know what he was going to say, but Tony could wait. Bucky took his sweet time getting off the couch, making sure Peter and Natasha were doing fine. She had switched out his shirt for one of Bucky's own, the tee hanging off of him like a gown. They were laughing when Bucky poked his head in, pausing as if they were talking about the man himself. Natasha shooed him away with a wave of her hand. Bucky finally went back to the door, taking one more breath before he opened the door. 

Tony was sitting on the ground, his hands fiddling with his glasses. There was a cut on his forehead with a small butterfly bandage holding it together, while the man in question looked to be falling apart himself. He didn't stand up when Bucky opened the door, he barely looked up. Instead, he simply slid his glasses back on and ran a hand through his hair. 

Bucky sat across from him, his back to the door. Bucky decided to let Tony speak first, give him some room to think.

"How is he?" His voice sounded exactly how he looked. 

"He's fine now, helping Natasha make dinner. She told him that they would make a pillow fort while they force me to bake something for dessert." Tony laughed, yet it didn't seem to reach his eyes. 

"That's good." 

"So, you gonna tell me what happened?" Bucky just wanted this over, just so that Tony didn't look so god damn miserable anymore. 

"Something has been bugging him this week, he should've never been on the field. But, after you left, he kept making moves and not telling anyone- I mean, he's lucky he didn't get shot with what he was doing." Tony sucked in a ragged breath, his eyes wide. Bucky sat with him, not saying a word. "When we got back, we just started going back and forth. I told him that he has to listen on the field...but I guess he took that as he needs to follow orders. That led to a whole new can of worms I didn't even know we had and- I don't know. One thing led to another, he's out the door and I don't know where he went." Bucky watched as more tears slid down his face, he looked just like his son. He knew Steve wasn't gone, he just needed to catch his breath. He would be back, in time. 

"I mean, He has to know I don't think of him like that, right?" Tony's voice was suddenly loud, the panic clear. "I would never, in my life, treat him the way they did. I-I mean, he has to-"

"He does know. He knows that you would never treat him like that, he knows that none of us would...but, you know he still has episodes like this. None of us should've let it get this far." Bucky shifted forward just enough grab Tony's shoulder, making sure his grip was tight. "He'll come back. You'll talk it out, it'll be fine."

"I know, still fucking sucks though." Bucky nodded. He stood back up, brushing the dust off of his pants. Tony followed suit while putting back on his usual mask. "Can you...make sure he goes to bed at a good time? He's been staying up watching movies and I've been trying to get him to bed but, can't say no."

"Yeah Tony, though I can't make any promises." He watched Tony head back down the hallway and into the elevator, the flash of a grim smile just as the elevator doors closed. Bucky took a moment before walking back into his house. He could hear Natasha and Peter in the kitchen. Flour covered the counter as the two rolled out some sort of dough.

"What are we feasting on tonight?" Bucky asked.

"Peter decided that we should make perogies,"

"Oh, well, then I have plenty of time for dessert. Make some room,"

**Author's Note:**

> comment whether you guys want another short fluffy story or something longer (multi-chapter, probably sad)   
> :)


End file.
